Late Night Talk
by ASiriuslyGleekyTimeLord
Summary: Burt wakes up in the middle of the night and finds a visitor on the floor in his and Carole's bedroom.  Maybe his congressional campaign is taking a bigger toll on his family than he thought.


Disclaimer : I don't own Glee. I wish I did though, continuity would run rampant more than it does now that's for sure! Blaine, you would be a senior!

A/N : This is a one-shot that can also act as a precursor to a longer fic idea I've been toying around with. This is more of a comforting father and son story that I think is needed after seeing Burt almost explode after Sue's one campaign commercial and knowing that Kurt is already worried that the stress of the campaign is going to be too much for his dad.

Big thank you to Julia (xxmakemecrazier) on tumblr for being my beta. I would have been displeased with the final product if it wasn't for you chica! Thanks so much! *hugs*

Late Night Talk

Burt Hummel thought that he was alone with the teacher in his house when the shouting match had occurred. He was angry, and all he could think about was the memory of that commercial so he didn't hear the quiet whimper from somewhere upstairs. It was too quick, too quiet. Of course he didn't notice it, no normal human would.

But that night, when he awoke with no reason, no nightmare, no loud noise outside, he realized that something had happened that he should have noticed. Pulling out of his wife's arms carefully so as not to wake her, Burt sat up and looked around the bedroom, blinking in the darkness. The clock on their nightstand read that it was just after 2:30 so everyone would be asleep by now. Even Finn was most likely passed out in front of his X-Box, but at least he would be sleeping nonetheless.

Standing, Burt headed towards his door to check on his boys, go downstairs, make sure that everything was still alright, when a shadow on the floor caught his eye. Moving closer he heard the sound of slow and even breathing coming from the mass and frowned. Not risking turning on the light in the room, Burt stepped over the form, over to the door and turned on the hall light. There, illuminated by the soft glow from the light bulb was his son, fast asleep, face scrunched in what seemed to be pain.

Why was Kurt asleep, in this room, in the middle of the night? Crouching down, Burt reached a hand out to his son and rested it on his shoulder. This illicited a whimper. "Kurt? Come on kiddo, let's get you to bed," the father said quietly as the boy gasped, flying up and looking around urgently. As soon as he saw his father though he felt the hot tears start running down his face. "Hey, it's okay, come here," and then he was bundled in his father's arms with a gentle but steady hand at his back.

"Dad…" he whispered. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean...I just wanted to make sure you were okay...all the campaign commercials and the stress…"

Burt's heart broke at the sound of fear and anxiety in his son's voice, now tinged with exhaustion as he realized this must have been worrying the boy for a while, maybe ever since he went into this campaign.

"Hey," Burt's voice helped to quiet his son as he helped Kurt to his feet. "Come on, let's go down to the kitchen and talk for a little bit," he said and with his hand on Kurt's lower back father guided son downstairs and sat him down at the table. Knowing it would help Burt awkwardly filled a teapot with water and set it on the stove top to heat up. He then went to the cupboard and got some of the tea that Kurt and Carole both liked to help them de-stress at the end of a rough day. He figured he and Kurt could both use it right then. Once the cups were ready and the water was heating well, he sat down next to his son. "Now, why'd you hold this in to the point you were so upset you needed to sleep on the floor in our bedroom? Why didn't you come to me and talk to me about it?"

"If something happened I...I just wanted to be there," Kurt whispered. "I needed to be there in case you had another heart attack and we needed a doctor or an ambulance or-"

"And you don't think Carole could do that if, and I mean_ if_, something happened?" Burt asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Last time, I couldn't do anything, I need to be there to help, I need to stop it."

"Kurt, stop," Burt said and his son looked at him, eyes ringed with red, glistening with tears he was trying desperately to hold back. "It's been almost a year, but you keep treating it like it happened just a few weeks ago." Kurt opened his mouth to say something but Burt raised his hand to stop him. "At dinner at Breadsticks you basically said 'Dad, you just had a heart attack.' Kurt, it didn't just happen. I'm eating healthier, I'm getting exercise in when I can, it's not as bad as it was before. I know what I need to do now to be safe and I'm doing it," he said, but Kurt shook his head.

"I know Dad, I know, I just...I can't go through that again. You don't know what it was like…" Kurt whispered, knowing if he raised his voice anymore it would crack. "You didn't have to sit there and just...watch for days, knowing that you could lose the person you love most at a moment's notice and there was nothing, absolutely nothing you could do to change it."

"No, I don't know what it was like, but I imagined it...quite a bit last year after you told me that Karofsky kid threatened to kill you. Because that could have been me if he had done anything to hurt you," Burt said and Kurt turned his head away. "No, Kurt come on. Stuff like that...it's horrible, yeah, but it happens. It's life. And I'm okay now, and you're safe now, and you have Blaine and Carole and Finn, all your friends in Glee Club and the Warblers at Dalton now too. Even if something were to happen, which I'm not saying it would, you wouldn't be alone."

"It's not the same...Friends and step family aren't the same as real family. You're all I have left…" Kurt whispered.

"Kurt that's not true," Burt said but Kurt pushed away from him.

"Yes it is! Mom's dead, Dad! She's dead and she's never coming back and if you left too I wouldn't know what to do!" He was shouting, but he needed to get it out. "I'm just 17," he whispered, sounding defeated. "I shouldn't lose my parents this young…" He slumped in his seat, holding his head in his hands.

"Kurt, I am not throwing in the towel just yet," Burt said, resting his hand on Kurt's shoulder. "One nasty incident does not the end of the world make." His son's body was shaking with quiet sobs and his father took him into his arms, holding him tightly. "I promise, I will do everything I can to stick around to see those grandkids I know I'm gonna have. But you've gotta take the weight of the world off of your shoulders. You don't wanna be having a heart attack when you're twenty, okay?" He felt the gentle nod of a head against his chest and grinned, patting his son's back until the teapot started to squeal. He released his son gently and went over to pour the water and brought the cups over to the table.

"Thanks," Kurt whispered softly.

"Not a problem kiddo," Burt replied, smiling as his son blew on the tea and then sipped at it.

They sat and talked for a while, drinking their tea, and Burt smiled when he saw his son blinking slower and slower, the warmth in his stomach helping him relax. Taking the cups and setting them in the sink, he wasn't surprised when he turned around and found Kurt slowly slumping forward in his seat, exhaustion starting to overcome him. Knowing he couldn't carry his boy upstairs, Burt strolled over and rested a hand on Kurt's shoulder, causing the boy's head to jerk up and he looked at his father, blinking tiredly. "Come on Kurt, let's get you up to your bed," he whispered and helped his son to his feet and up the stairs, Kurt swaying tiredly as they went.

Walking into Kurt's room, he helped his son into bed and pulled the blankets up over him, tucking him in. "Love you, Dad," Kurt murmured tiredly, his eyes fluttering closed of their own volition.

"Love you too, son. Sleep well," he whispered, running his fingers through his son's hair even after the boy's breathing had evened and slowed into that of sleep.

"Burt? Is everything okay?"

Turning, he found his wife standing in the doorway and gave her a small smile before nodding. She walked over and stood behind him before leaning down and kissing the boy gently on the forehead. He stirred, humming in his sleep. "Mom?" he murmured.

She smiled sadly, blinking back tears. "Just go to sleep baby, just go to sleep." Husband and wife watched as he stilled again, drifting back into the arms of Morpheus. "Come on Burt, he'll be okay," she whispered and he nodded. Yeah, he would.


End file.
